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POLITICO 44

School districts from Maryland to Texas are fielding angry complaints from parents opposed to President Barack Obama’s back-to-school address Tuesday – forcing districts to find ways to shield students from the speech as conservative opposition to Obama spills into the nation’s classrooms.

The White House says Obama’s address is a sort of pep talk for the nation’s schoolchildren. But conservative commentators have criticized Obama for trying to “indoctrinate” students to his liberal beliefs, and some parents call it an improper mix of politics and education.

“The gist is, ‘I want to see what the president has to say before you expose it to my child.’ Another said, ‘This is Marxist propaganda.’ They are very hostile,” said Patricia O’Neill, a Democrat who is vice president of the Montgomery County School Board, in a district that borders Washington, D.C. “I think it’s disturbing that people don’t want to hear the president, but we live in a diverse society.”

The White House moved Thursday to quell the controversy. First it revised an Education Department lesson plan that drew the ire of conservatives because it called for students to write letters about how they can help the president.

Then Obama aides said they would release the text of Obama’s address on Monday, a day before his speech is to be beamed into the classrooms – an apparent attempt to show skeptical parents ahead of time what he plans to say.

Obama’s speech to students was first announced late last month but criticism grew this week, as conservative commentators including Glenn Beck and Michelle Malkin said Obama was trying to improperly influence the students. Beck even urged parents to take their children out of school on Tuesday to protest Obama’s speech.

The forum – a presidential address to students, where Obama plans to encourage them to take responsibility for education and do their best – might seem an unlikely forum for conservatives to make a stand. But some of the commentators said it was improper for Obama to insert himself so visibly into a classroom setting.

And it shows that the conservative anger with Obama and his policies is moving beyond the congressional town halls in August, where many members of Congress were loudly criticized by conservatives opposed to Obama’s health care policies.

Republican strategist Rich Galen said he didn’t have a problem with Obama reaching out to schoolchildren because “he is everybody’s president. But you have to be very careful that it is not seen as literally propaganda. The original idea to have them write letters about how to help the president crossed the line and the White House realized that.”

But Democratic strategist Chris Lehane said the protest against the presidential speech “shows at some level how desperate the right is to find an issue to challenge Obama on ...They have gotten some traction on health care, but the mere fact that they have jumped on this reflects that this is a party without a voice. Are they going to run in the mid-terms on a ‘Presidents shouldn’t talk to kids’ platform?”

For the republican party to make such a big deal out of this just shows their petty, knee-jerk reaction to everything the President tries to do. The party of NO offers very little in ideas or policies to help this country move forward, but lots of deranged, nonsensical criticism.

2 other presidents spoke to kids and the president wants to speak to kids about personal responsibility, you'd think all American would welcome that but not the far-right idealogues, wingnut and racists who uses every policy or proposals to voice their anger over losing the general elections in November.

Get over it people, you LOST. Get use to being a vocal MINORITY becaue that's all you'll be especially if you continue this pettiness.

All parents who don't want their kids to hear the President's speech can find private education or home schooling and these "rocket scientists" can foot the bill. Don't like it? Then find another country. The democratically elected President of the United States gets to speak to American kids whether you like it or not just as kids were 'forced' to listen to Ronald Reagan talk about cutting taxes, or George Bush about not taking drugs, or John Kennedy about the space program. You can rant and threaten and intimidate all you want. But you didn't have the votes last year and that's what determines who has power. Suck on that lemon.

For the republican party to make such a big deal out of this just shows their petty, knee-jerk reaction to everything the President tries to do. The party of NO offers very little in ideas or policies to help this country move forward, but lots of deranged, nonsensical criticism.

It is childish and petty and shows just where part of the republican party is right now.

It is not talking to the students that is in question, it is the lessons that go along with his little talk. How can I help the Pres.? How many of you libbies would have liked Bush having such a lesson? The dem party sure has changed since JFK. Help the Pres. - make posters that have his slogans on them, pledge service to the Pres WOW has the party changed.

Keep them home and have your own lesson on the Constitution. Maybe our leader should read it again. He has forgotten 99% of it.